Detachable top lift



July 9, 1957 v. MARINO DETACHABLE TOP LIFT Filed March 15, 1956 INVEN TOR. V/ /VC ENT MAR/N0.

7 #7? e'uam A TTORNEYS.

s w sp DETACHABLE TOP ILIFT Vincent Marino, Havel-hill, Mass. Application March 1S,1956,' Ser'ial "No. 571,733

a relatin (61.35542 l his invention relates to an improvement in detachable top lifts.

Many structures have been proposed for detaching the top lifts on the heels of ladies shoes. Usually such devices have involved an elongated post member upstanding from the top lift and fitting in an elongated socket member in the heel. Removability has been achieved by threading the members or by snap fastener type mechanisms or by the frictional pressure of resilient spring elements.

The socket member has usually been an elongated tube or sleeve which serves the additional purpose of strengthening extremely brittle or pointed heels against breakage. To avoid rotation of the top lift, the sleeve and post have sometimes been of irregular cross section such as polygonal or triangular.

It is an object of this invention to provide a detachable top lift that is simple and inexpensive and requires only a circular axial bore and a shallow slot in the heel to serve as a socket member. Thus the expense of making and drive fitting a sleeve of polygonal cross section into a circular drilled hole may be eliminated to reduce overall cost.

Another object of the invention is to provide a detachable top lift of one piece of material which will remain seated in the axial bore of a heel during use, but may be slidably removed when desired.

A further object of the invention is to secure a frictional, resilient pressure between the upstanding post of a detachable top lift and the inside face of a bore or sleeve in a heel by a unitary strip of metal of sinuous or serpentine configuration.

Other advantages of the invention will be apparent from the claims, from the description of the drawing and from the drawing in which- Fig. l is a side view of a ladys heel, partly broken away to show the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged bottom view of the lower, or top lift engaging, face of the device shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a top lift and post in accordance with the invention and having three offset prongs for connecting the parts together.

Fig. 4 is a side view of the top lift and post shown in Fig. 1, but removed from the heel bore.

Fig. 5 is a front view of the device shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 6 is a front view of the device shown in Fig. 1 with the sleeve or socket tube modified.

In the drawing, a ladys heel 20, is shown, the heel being of the high and sharp pointed type although the device of this invention is useful with other types of ladies heels. An elongated axial bore 21 of circular cross section is formed in heel 20, usually by drilling, and extends from the flat lower face 22 well up toward the concave curved upper face 23 of the heel. A transversely extending, shallow slot 24 is formed in the lower face 22 which may be formed by a disc type saw so that it has depth in its central portion 25 but does not extend to the opposite sides of the heel at its ends 26 and 27.

I 2,7 98,313 Patented July 9, 1957 Preferably, a tubular metal sleeve or socket 28 of circular 'cross section is drive fitted into the axial bore 21 primarily :togive strength to the heel20 in its narrow pointed portion and'secondar-ily to provide a smooth, metal inner face '29 :in the bore 21. The sleeve 28 is snitahly'cu't ati31' and 32 in extension of slot v24 to cooperate therewith; I The top lift.35 may be of any suitable material shaped to conform to the shapeof :the lower face v22 of heel 20 and the upper face 'of the top lift is designated 36. .A unitary, upstanding .post.37 issecured to the upper face 36 by two offset prongs 38 and 39 as in Fig-5' or by threeoflset prongs 40, i41 and 42 as on post 43 shown in Fig. 13. Theypost 37 ispreferablyformed of flatistrip metal having inherent resiliency and is pre-formed with sinuous' or serpentine ibends. Preferably post 37 isbent at the .rear' Side thereof as at 45, and then :ben't reversely at the front-side thereof as at :46 with the terminal .tip 47 being in the same vertical plane as the curved outer face 48 of bend 45.

As shown in Fig. 4, the curved outer face 48 of bend 45, the curved outer face 49 of bend 46 and the curved terminal tip 47 are all normally in vertical planes outside and beyond the plane of the cylindrical inner face 29 of the sleeve 28. When inserted in the sleeve 28 the faces 48 and 49 and the tip 47 are thus spring pressed against the inner face 29 at three different levels and the overall height of the post 37 is slightly increased. Post 37 is substantially coextensive with the bore 21 and sleeve 28 and it will be apparent that it may be used without any sleeve 28 if desired.

Preferably the opposite side edges 51 and 52 of the post 37 are straight and parallel, as best shown in Fig. 5, and slide within a bore 21, or within a tube 28 with very little clearance to prevent sidewise motion of the top lift. In addition, the one piece post 37 is provided with opposite, upstanding shoulders 53 and 54 which fit with the slot 24 and prevent the top lift from rotating relative to the heel 20.

A modification is shown in Fig. 6 wherein the post 37 is inserted in a socket or sleeve 56 with slight clearance therebetween and the socket 56 is provided with a pair of oppositely disposed depressions 57 and 58 near its inner end 59. The post 37 thus slides easily into the sleeve until nearly seated therein and the side edges 60 and 61 of the post then come into frictional contact with the inwardly projecting faces 62 and 63 of depressions 57 and 58 to assure an even tighter fit.

I claim:

1. A removable top lift device comprising an elongated, upstanding heel having an elongated axial bore extending from its lower face toward its upper face and having a transverse shallow slot in the said bottom face; a top lift conforming in shape to the shape of the bottom face of said heel and an elongated upstanding post of resilient, flat, strip material firmly secured in the upper face of said top lift, said post having transverse shoulders adapted to fit within said slot and being normally bent into serpentine, or sinuous, form for resiliently bearing against opposite sides of the inner face of said bore, at a plurality of different levels, when seated therein.

2. A combination as specified in claim 1 plus a hollow tube of uniform cross section secured within said bore and having slots which register with the slot of said bore, said tube having an inwardly projecting bulge on each opposite side transversely of the upper portion thereof adapted to bear against the opposite side edges of said post when seated within said tube.

3. A ladys heel structure comprising a heel body having a single, central, post receiving socket and a removable top lift having a single, central post secured thereto, said post being of resilient strip material of less outside dimensions than ,the inside dimensions of said sockefl but sinuously bent, ina plurality of opposite lateral directions.

to press against the inside face of said socket at a plurality of different levels therein for frictionally and slideably engaging in saidsocketl Y Q i531 14. In combination, a french heel having an 'axialbore, of circular. cross section, extending from .itsjlowe'r face nearly to its upper face; atubular metal sleevevof circular cross section'drivefitted in,.and 'co-extensive with said bore; a top lift adapted to fit on the lower face ,of said heel and a sinuous, resilient, upstanding 'post secured to said top lift and substantially co-extensive with said sleeve, the outer curved facesof said post being adapted to slideably and resiliently engage. the inner face of said sleeve for. detachably retaining said top 'lift on said heel. 5. A. detachable top liftcomprising a top lift adapted to fit a .ladysfi'ench heel, said top lift having a single, central, sinuous strip' of resilient metal projecting thereabove provided with at least two. vertically spaced opposite'bends adapted to .frictionally, resiliently and slideably engage opposite interior-faces of a circular vertical recess in a ladys heel at leasttwo levels therein.

6. attachment for top lifts or the like comprising an elongated, sinuous post of resilient, strip material having oifset prongs at one end thereof for embedding in a top lift, said post having shoulders projecting above the level of said prongs and extending from side to side thereof and having at least two oppositely curved bends therein, one at the front and one at the back, and one higher than the other.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

